'What Does David Fincher NOT Do?' A Look Inside the Director's Techniques

Filmmaking is just as much about what you don't put into a movie as it is what you do. This is a concept David Fincher used to describe his own directorial approach, and something Tony Zhou examines in yet another excellent video essay. Check out this intriguing piece that answers the question, "What does David Fincher not do?"

We spend so much time scouring the internet to find out what history's greatest filmmakers did to make their most iconic films, but perhaps it might be a beneficial change of pace to find out what they didn't do so you can potentially use what you learn in your own work. Obviously, we're not talking about chucking your ALEXA off of a bluff, or anything like that, but knowing when and when not to use certain camera movements (why don't you move your camera) and shot sizes (why don't you cut to a close-up) is supremely important for directors.

Many times we want it all when we're offered all of the bountiful cinematographic possibilities: going handheld with a Dutch-angled two-shot while circling around both subjects who are themselves twirling in the opposite direction and cutting between them and two GoPro-wearing dolphins that are breaching in unison, coming up from the depths of the South Pacific to reveal a Fijian visage. However, many times restraint is just what your film needs from its director, and discovering what you won't do will make all the more brilliant what you do do.

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26 Comments

Restraint and Purpose. Too many directors just throw a bunch of cameras on a scene, get a bunch of coverage, and want to figure it out in post. Guys like Fincher know exactly what they want to get, and Why those choices are the right ones for the scene, and it's usually invisible.

Totally agree. He's a true auter and I'm excited for his latest flick. This was a great article and video on his style. I'd love to see more of these so that we can compare different director's styles.

i think a useful follow-up would be a piece on editors. directors cover scenes from multiple angles and, the three people scene for instance, is shot as a wide (or even several different wides), in two-shots from various angles, and as singles. the ultimate magic happens in the editing room - i'd love to hear more about the collaboration between director and editor (think walter murch or thelma schoonmaker).

also, look at michael haneke, two time golden palm winner. he leaves you with minutes and minutes of a medium wide shot of two people talking DESPITE a completely and utterly dramatic shift in the conversation between two people, defying our expectations. while i love, love, love fincher's films, i think he actually fulfills our expectations (hence being so successful). he makes it easy - i like it a bit harder.

This is a great video and the article introduces a vivid point without overstating (but I will) that what you don't do is tell a story without seriously thinking the damn thing through. This isn't novel, what Fincher is doing. A plan of attack is at the heart of masterful filmmaking since it became an art form and I believe part of the reason we can be astounded today is that tech has made it easier to tell a story without crafting one. And I'm not relegating his achievements by saying the man seems to be doing his job. Rather I'm implying a larger margin hardly are. I believe it helps to appreciate really great directors as obsessive. That last comment, likely the most telling, says it all. He knows you want to watch, he knows you need to know and he's going to play with you.

This is a great video and the article introduces a vivid point without overstating (but I will) that what you don't do is tell a story without seriously thinking the damn thing through. This isn't novel, what Fincher is doing. A plan of attack is at the heart of masterful filmmaking since it became an artform and I believe part of the reason we can be astounded today is that tech and industrial reliance on efficiency has made it easier to tell a story without crafting one. And I'm not relegating his achievement when I say he's doing the job. Rather that a greater margin of directors propel his talent forward when they hardly can. I believe it helps to appreciate really great directors as obsessive with the rest longing to earn that right. That last comment, likely the most telling, says it all. He knows you want to watch, he knows you need to know and he's going to play with you. That's a pretty cool place to be.

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